Ottawa Field Naturalists' Club Ottawa/Gatineau (50 Km radius from Parliament Hill) E. Ontario, W. Quebec Compiler: Gregory Zbitnew at [email protected]
September 7, 2017 The highlight of the week was a TUFTED TITMOUSE reported at the Arboretum on the 5th. Aside from the continuing RED-NECKED PHALAROPES, as late as the 5th, there has not been anything particularly rare seen in the area. The week was rather cool and cloudy with some wet days. The remnants of hurricane Harvey on the 3rd gave promise of good things, but in the end it was just a wet fizzle. The 3rd was also the day of the Ottawa-Gatineau Seedathon which tallied 115 species, not that bad considering the mediocre weather conditions. There have been some decent days for migrating PASSERINES, which continue to stream through, including some early sightings. Unfortunately, next week will likely see the last sightings of the year for a number of species, as fall inexorably approaches. A few early SNOW GEESE sightings were of interest, including one at Giroux Road as late as the 4th. A few somewhat early sightings of both species of SCAUP at a few places including the Moodie Drive Ponds. These ponds also had REDHEAD. The supply of SHOREBIRDS at Embrun is deteriorating due to shrinking habitat. However, the Carp River Reclamation area has some developing good habitat, and some of the better species found this week have been BAIRD’S, STILT and WHITE-RUMPED SANDPIPERS, as well as a BLACK-BELLIED PLOVER. Almonte still has only a handful of common species. A tour of the sod farms south of the city on the 5th was quite bleak, with only a single field yielding 25 KILLDEER, or 26 including the one snatched by a rampaging PEREGRINE FALCON. The LEAST BITTERN was seen in Carp as late as the 2nd, and there was one in Kanata on the same day. One was at Baie Mclaurin on the 1st. A late BLACK TERN was at the Moodie Drive Ponds on the 5th. A few COMMON NIGHTHAWKS are still passing through. An OLIVE-SIDED flycatcher was on Calypso Road on the 3rd, and one was at the Old Quarry Trail on the 6th. The most recent sightings of YELLOW-BELLIED FLYCATCHERS were from Vanier and Britannia, both on the 6th. SWALLOWS, mostly TREE SWALLOWS, were still present in the hundreds in Embrun on the 3rd. A NORTHERN MOCKINGBIRD was in Plaisance on the 2nd. 4 species of VIREO were present this week, as were 22 species of WARBLER, with 19 of them on the 3rd. The population has shifted this week with PALM WARBLERS becoming increasingly common. An early WHITE-CROWNED SPARROW was at the Rockcliffe Airport on the 6th. 5 PINE SISKINS were in Baie Simard on the 6th, with a few sightings of RED CROSSBILL in the northern reaches of the area. The OFNC's Birds Committee no longer reports owl sightings on the Internet. We will continue to encourage the reporting of owls to [email protected] for the purpose of maintaining local records. Thanks to everyone who contributed bird observations. We encourage everyone to report their bird sightings on eBird for the benefit of the entire birding community. Good birding. *Reminder regarding access to the Shirley’s Bay Causeway:* DND has amended our access procedure. You must call Range Control (613-991-5740) for permission, state that you are an OFNC member and give your name. DND will be provided with the OFNC's membership list and they will check, so you need to keep your membership up to date. Finally, you must call again when you have left the area. DND would also like to be informed if you see anyone on the property who should not be there, such as boats in the bay or people fishing on the causeway. They are trespassing and DND will deal with the situation. _______________________________________________ ONTBIRDS is presented by the Ontario Field Ornithologists (OFO) - the provincial birding organization. Send bird reports to [email protected] For information about ONTBIRDS including how to unsubscribe visit http://www.ofo.ca/site/page/view/information.ontbirdssetup Posting guidelines can be found at http://www.ofo.ca/site/page/view/information.ontbirdsguide Visit the OFO Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/OntarioFieldOrnithologists
